Chapter 143 On the Way

After an autumn rain.

A swordsman strayed into the orchard and saw the fruits on the trees, which looked so tempting. They had been washed by the rain and were so tender and shiny that they seemed to be able to squeeze out water with a light pinch.

After a strong ideological struggle, the swordsman finally couldn't help but pick one to taste.

It was this action that happened to be seen by the old farmer who was guarding the orchard. The old farmer blew his beard and glared, thinking that another fruit thief came when I was not paying attention, and immediately rushed over with a knife and fork.

However, seeing the swordsman with a long sword from a distance, he began to mutter in his heart and backed off. He planned to shout a few words and then let the matter go.

This year's harvest is good, and there are still large areas of fruit forests that have been confiscated, which is not seen by ordinary people.

What surprised him was that this handsome and tall wine swordsman was surprisingly easy to talk to. After learning that the orchard was his, he took the initiative to apologize and planned to pay.

This time, the old farmer was really embarrassed. He scratched his head. He had never seen such a scene before.

After all, he was a simple and honest man. His anger had long gone. He couldn't really accept the money. Seeing him like this, the swordsman smiled and changed the subject. He chatted with him to ease the atmosphere.

The old farmer gradually became interested in the swordsman's calm voice. He couldn't help but complain to the swordsman. Recently, there were always outsiders passing by the orchard. Those people were very low-minded and always took advantage of the situation to pick a few fruits.

It's not that he was stingy with those fruits. The old farmer just couldn't swallow this breath. Recently, his son was seriously ill in bed. He could pick the fruits of the whole forest by himself. The workload can be imagined. At this juncture, someone came to steal the fruits. His already depressed heart was further fueled. Naturally, he couldn't help but get angry.

In addition, if everyone picked a few fruits, and picked the good ones, the number of people would increase. For people like him, the loss would not be small.

Hearing this, Li Changxiao thought that he had accidentally offended someone, no wonder he was so angry.

He looked at the sky and saw that it was getting dark. He had been sleeping in the wild recently. Although it was a different experience to integrate into nature and feel nature, he couldn't always do so. After all, he was a civilized person and should sleep in bed occasionally.

After thinking about it, he proposed a condition. He would stay at the old farmer's house for one night. The next day, he would help the old farmer harvest the fruits, and then take a basket of fruits away, so that he could eat them on the way.

The old farmer shook his head vigorously, still fearing Li Changxiao, a Jianghu man.

He was an ordinary person and didn't know martial arts. What if this swordsman had ulterior motives?

The swordsman had no choice but to show the sack on his back. When he opened it, the shiny silver instantly blinded the old farmer.

He had been planting fruit trees all his life and had never seen so much silver.

Li Changxiao told his purpose. There was no shop in front and no one behind. Even if he knew martial arts, he would only be able to fill his stomach if he encountered a big bear or tiger.

Moreover, he was not a person who was short of money, so he naturally looked down on the melons and dates in the old farmer's house, so there was no need to be so wary of himself.

The fruit farmer agreed, and he took Li Changxiao to the hut in the forest.

The house was not big and was made of wood. The structure was quite solid. Li Changxiao couldn't help but praise the old farmer for his skillful hands. Such living conditions were far better than others. Most people still lived in thatched houses.

The old farmer's face darkened, and he told the swordsman that he and his son built this house together, but his son was seriously ill and bedridden some time ago.

At this point, the old farmer wiped his tears, brought a bowl of water to Li Changxiao, and asked him to sit in the house first.

Li Changxiao pushed open the wooden door and sat down on the kang. It was autumn now, and it was actually very cold at night. However, once he sat on the kang, the coldness slowly faded away. Although it was not as fast as drinking, it was very soothing and could easily make people sleepy.

His eyes fell on the young man lying in bed not far away.

The young man was tall and strong, but his mouth was crooked and his eyes were slanted. He looked very miserable. No wonder the old farmer was so sad when he talked about his son. He was at the most energetic age, but he ended up in such a miserable end.

It was not an exaggeration to say that it was a catastrophe.

Li Changxiao turned around and asked the old farmer if he had had a dispute with anyone recently. His son might have been beaten by someone.

While the old farmer was burning firewood and cooking, he told Li Changxiao that disputes were natural.

At this time of year, villagers from the mountain and passing jianghu would occasionally come to steal fruits, and his son had a straightforward temper and was strong, so conflicts often occurred.

At this point, the old farmer told Li Changxiao helplessly that it was not that they were stingy. He also understood that passers-by were thirsty and could not help picking one or two to taste. But if everyone picked a few, the harvest that year would be pitifully low.

However, the old farmer asked the barefoot doctor in the town to see him. His son had no injuries at all. He was not in a fight. The symptoms were a bit like a stroke, but not a stroke. In short, there was no way to treat this disease.

As he spoke, the old farmer brought the food one by one.

A bowl of steamed rice made of yellow coarse rice, which was a coarse grain. Just looking at the appearance, you can tell that the taste would not be very good. There were also two side dishes, one of which was fried nuts with vinegar, and the other was fried mushrooms with peppers.

The old farmer's hands that presented the food were covered with calluses and gullies.

The coarse yellow rice tastes terrible, the more you chew it, the more bitter it becomes. The nuts fried in vinegar are very sour and a bit bitter, but you can taste a fruity aroma if you taste it carefully. It is not delicious but it has a unique flavor. The only dish that is worthy of praise is the fried mushrooms with peppers. The peppers are old dried peppers and are quite spicy. The mushrooms were picked on the spot when we came back, and they are fresh enough, as if you can smell the scent of autumn rain and soil.

Li Changxiao is not picky either. In line with the principle of not wasting food, he eats everything he eats.

Outside the wooden house, it soon fell into darkness.

The old farmer asked Li Changxiao to sleep first. He also wanted to feed his son and give him a bath.

late at night.

The old farmer finished everything and looked at the sack behind the swordsman involuntarily.

He swallowed.

The white money seemed to be imprinted on his mind. Just now, he was too busy to distract his attention. Now that he was busy with everything, in the silence of the night, his mind gradually became more active.

If you have this money, you can go farther away and hire a better doctor to treat your son.

perhaps……

That'll be fine.

But... the old farmer was struggling in his heart, with a hesitant look on his face, and subconsciously reached for the knife pinned to his waistband.

Just... kill this swordsman.

The money is yours.

The old farmer took a deep breath, and his inner desire became stronger and stronger. Under the great pressure, his brain began to lack oxygen for a while, causing a brief feeling of suffocation. There was a constant buzzing in his ears. He looked at the swordsman, as if everything was happening. In front of you.

He was just standing, and his clothes were already soaked with cold sweat in this cool autumn night.

In the end, the old farmer failed to swing the knife. The moment he decided to give up, he became completely decadent. He gently opened the door and walked a few hundred meters away, crying alone.

The swordsman just turned over and continued to sleep soundly. The feeling of sleeping on the kang was really good, much more comfortable than tree trunks, land, or the bottom of the river.

Li Changxiao's speed was actually quite fast, and he was probably still ahead of Mu Qin and the others.

He set off not too late. The key was that he left the Lingtian Dynasty and continued traveling north through the Northern Desert. He saw a large river with rolling water. Li Changxiao jumped into the river and fell asleep. He slept for three days in a row. When I woke up, I found that I had been carried far away. I guess it was a coincidence that I saved fifteen days of travel.

If he is, just wait here.

Maybe we can still meet some old friends.

(My neck feels a little uncomfortable. Let’s take a day off today. There is only one chapter.)